Indwelling urethral catheterization is performed in approximately 10 to 15 percent of hospitalized patients. About 25 percent of these patients contract bacterial infections of the urinary tract. Two studies of note are, Garibaldi, R. A.; Burke, J. P.; Dickman, M. L.; and Smith, C. B., "Factors Predisposing to Bacteriuria During Indwelling Urethral Cathiterization". New Engl. J. Med., 291:215, 1974 and Kunin, C. M. and McCormack, R. C., "Prevention of Catheter--Induced Urinary--Tract Infections by Sterile Closed Drainage". New Engl. J. Med., 274:1155, 1966.
The incidence of catheter--induced urinary tract infection still remains a problem despite various prophylactic measures that have been tried. Attempts to reduce the incidence of urinary tract infections have included the application of antibiotic ointments or other bactericidal agents to the surface of the catheter, frequent bladder irrigation with concommittant prophylactic administration of antibiotics, or inhibition of the growth of bacteria in urine drainage containers. See, Akiyama, H. and Okamoto, S., "Prophylaxis of Indwelling Urethral Catheter Infection: Clinical Experience with a Modified Foley Catheter and Drainage System". The Journal of Urology, 121:40, 1979. U.S. Pat. No. 4,054,139, Oligodynamic Catheter, to Crossley, teaches a catheter, percutaneous lead device, or the like, which comprises an oligodynamic agent such as metallic silver or its compounds, alone or in association with other heavy metals such as gold, for the purpose of reducing infection associated with these devices.
It would be desirable to provide compositions useful as coatings for urinary catheters, lead devices, medical connections susceptible to touch contamination and the like, and compositions useful as a meterial for making these various devices, whereby the proliferation of bacteria thereon or in relatively close proximity thereto is inhibited. Inhibiting the proliferation of bacteria on urinary catheters and catheter adapter connections would reduce the risk of urinary tract infection caused by bacteria accessing the urinary tract at these sites. It also would be desirable for the compositions to be easily applied as coatings on presently existing medical connections and devices. A desirable characteristic of such a composition would be an antimicrobial effect which is long lasting without being physiologically incompatible with nearby tissue.